First Study of Rutland Water Shows Major Impact
The first-ever economic impact study of Rutland Water has revealed that the facility generates up to £100 million annually and provides direct employment for over two thousand people.
Rutland Water is an internationally famous nature reserve managed by the Leicestershire & Rutland Wildlife Trust in partnership with Anglian Water.
According to University of Hertfordshire MSc student in Finance and Investment, Rohan Ramakrishnan, who has just completed his dissertation on Rutland Water, the economic impact of the facility is very positive and progressive.
“When I was made aware of the existence and size of Rutland Water and the universal public outcry that it generated prior to its construction, I was excited about it,” he said. “I was equally excited that there was no impact study ever carried out on the facility and I liked the idea of carrying out research on a largely untouched area.”
Rohan’s study is a preliminary one on economic impact. He identified 34 organisations near Rutland Water and through gathering data from Companies House and the Anglian Water Authority and estimated that Rutland Water generated about £112,000 in revenues, about £35,000,000 in salaries and employed a total of 2,312 staff. He recommends a more detailed study so that the benefits of this facility continue to be documented.
Professor Geoffrey Hodgson, Research Professor, University of Hertfordshire Business School, who supervised Rohan’s MSc said: "Rutland Water is the largest artificial lake in England. Since it was constructed in the1970s there has until now been no study of its economic impact as an amenity for recreation and tourism. The preliminary study carried by a student at the University of Hertfordshire Business School shows that Rutland Water directly generates about £100 million annually in revenues and provides direct employment for over two thousand people. This important study indicates not only the scale of revenues generated by such an amenity but indicates the importance of economic impact studies of other major projects withimplications for leisure and recreation."